Irish Determination

Ever since my younger sister, Annie, learned to talk, she has been paving my way to adventures I never would have attempted on my own. I remember when she called to invite me on a trip to Ireland. “What??!? You get a trip to Ireland for graduation?” I shrieked through the holes in the now-obsolete receiver. “Mom and Dad only got me a ring!” “Well,... Read More

Bundle of Thanksgiving Joy

A post from Annie about my adorable new niece: “My Thanksgiving turkey has just come out of the oven, making me the single-most blessed mama of all time, I think.” “Magdalena Ann came into this world Wednesday evening, weighing 6 lbs. 7 oz, and measuring 20 inches. She’s my tiny little thing!” “Sitting in my easy chair, rocking my precious... Read More

Homeschooling Q&A with Mom

Beginning to homeschool can be nerve-wracking. In these early phases of gathering information and finding our homeschooling style, it has been helpful to gather people around who have “been there, done that.” I started counting the BTDT families around me (though not necessarily physically nearby). I’m blessed with at least nine or ten families who can field my... Read More

Angel Food Cake with Strawberry Rhubarb Jam

It’s always a treat when Annie comes to our house! Man, can my sister ever cook! Usually, Annie likes to make things up as she goes, but when it comes to baking… well, sometimes she still makes things up as she goes. For this angel food cake recipe, though, she followed every step exactly. And it turned out… heavenly. The recipe is from Glenda, a woman in Annie’s... Read More

My Nephew in His New Duds

Annie just sent me these pictures on her iPhone. My nephew is adorable. And I can’t believe he’s already saying these long sentences at six months old! 😉 Oh, I know what to do in this chair! Let me get that remote and turn it to espn! Poop! I can’t reach it and mom is dressing me up over and over! This stinks! Nobody knows the troubles I’ve seen….. But... Read More

Baby Pictures!

I’m so excited to share these pictures of my nephew! (Click here to read more or leave a comment on Baby Pictures!)  Read More

Welcome, Baby Gerber!

Annie and Drew’s baby was born late Wednesday afternoon! They’ve taken dozens of fantastic pictures already. I’m sure they’ll post them after they’re settled in. Some are up on facebook now. My husband and kids and I visited late Wednesday evening and tried to get some pictures in the dim hospital light. My new nephew is a perfect, sweet, healthy baby,... Read More

Annie Had Her Baby…Shower!

Last Saturday we threw a “Bee My Baby” Shower for Annie! She plans to use Burt’s Bees Baby products for her little boy, so we had fun planning a bee theme, with some daisies thrown in for good measure. (Click any image to view it larger. Click here to view my bee baby shower idea collection on Pinterest with links to ideas and places to buy supplies.) I had just... Read More

The Armadillo Story

Good fences make good neighbors… … as do husbands with rifles… but that’s getting ahead of the story. eHEM…. The Armadillo Story, by Annie Gerber. At first, I thought Jack was digging in the flower beds. Not that I got mad, really, since it was just a couple flowers, but Drew and I thought that chaining him up at night might be a good solution. What... Read More

Pregnancy Brain (and Pictures)

Well, it is Wednesday night at 7:30 and the realization hit that it is, indeed, NOT Tuesday night, like I had thought! AAAAaaa! Sorry! So, I thought this would be a good time to sneak in some pregnancy pictures and put up a big sign saying “to be continued!” I guess I should at least defend myself by saying that this last week HAS been crazy, with Drew still gone after... Read More